When I was a kid, no one had any idea how to deal with my hair, including the fledgling internet. Not that people were posting on how to deal with curly hair back then. I just used dad's Pert+ shampoo/conditioner combo, brushed all the tangles out, and left the house with what I called "Triangle Head".As I became an adult, I was slowly learning how to deal with my curls [not including straightening my hair because I got sick and tired of how awful my hair looked] Yes, I needed a separate conditioner - that made a ton of difference. I also learned to never brush my hair. All it would do is frizz and puff the hell out of it, as would drying it with a blow dryer. I figured out that oils were my friend (Argan oil was too heavy for my fine locks but coconut or almond oil works great). I also found a hair stylist, which I didn't even know I needed. All my life I'd gone to Fantastic Sams and gotten like a $7 cut, but they had no idea what they were doing. My hair stylist knows my hair type and my curl type and trims accordingly to make it look its best.
However, despite all these advances in my knowledge, I still hated my curls. I still had to deal with a ton of frizz even though I was only washing my hair 2-3 times a week. Then somehow, through some miracle of Google-knowing-everything, Youtube showed me a link to a video from someone called BiancaReneeToday. Although she is of a mixed race and has curls thicker than mine, I watched the hell out of her videos and absorbed all that knowledge.
There are curl types. There are porosity types. There are a ton of products I can use to help manage my curls, and tons of ways to apply them. Everybody is different, and reading reviews on products aren't always very accurate because people may have been buying products not meant for their hair type. Thanks to Bianca, I finally had some kind of idea on what would work best for me. There are shampoos and conditioners meant for curly hair (and not because they put that on the bottle) but because they are sulfate, silicone and paraben free. They have curl activator creams for "next day curls" because STOP WASHING YOUR HAIR EVERY DAY. They have diffusers for blow dryers to reduce frizz. It's crazy all the options that I have now.
And yet, I still couldn't find the perfect combination of things that made my hair look its best. Although Bianca Renee gave me the basic tools to understand my hair, I needed just a bit more. That's when I found Curly Susie. Although she's not nearly as charismatic as Bianca, her hair type is more similar to mine, and she did one particular video I found of interest: The Laura Routine / Curly Girl Method. In short, the Laura Routine is this:
1. Wash your hair normally with your shampoo/conditioner (or co-wash with only conditioner)
2. Add a f*ck ton of leave-in conditioner before exiting the shower. What kind apparently doesn't matter, but I like both Cantu and Shea Moisture for this.
3. Wrap your hair in a towel (microfiber or a cotton shirt is best to reduce frizz. I have the Aquis Hair Turban) for only 10-15 minutes to soak up all the dripping water.
4. Add a bunch of gel to your wet hair. At first I used Pantine gel that I've owned for years and hated it, so I tried the Cantu Define & Shine Custard that's not actually meant for curls but works much better.
5. Diffuse with lukewarm/cold air. This is where my routine differs. I always let my hair air dry, and when I tried following this, my hair still came out kind of crusty yet frizzy (although that might have been due to the Pantine gel). But really, I have no reason to waste my time with this step. Air drying works perfectly fine. My hair still ends up with a gel crust, but when I put it up in a ponytail for sleep, it looks perfect upon waking.
My hair looks shiny and healthy, my curls are defined and as soft as they can be for course hair, and the FRIZZ IS GONE.
I REPEAT, THE FRIZZ IS GONE.
This routine lasts for a good 2-3 days, basically until my next wash. It's amazing. I am finally in love with my curls. It only took 35 years to get here!
